Last night I was happily driving home because I got to meet Adam Savage of Mythbusters (more about this eventually) and while I was in the home stretch on Pflugerville’s main drag (aka FM 1825/Pecan Street), a possum was on the road. I desperately wanted to stop, test the limits of my badly-need-to-be-replaced tires and spare the poor animal.
It wasn’t meant to be thanks to a typical Austin Asshole driver riding my ass too closely so if I did the morally right thing, I would’ve been rear-ended with a 30% chance of the perpetrator being uninsured (thanks Texas GOP!)…while they were looking at their damned phone.
I continue to feel horrible. I know possums are mean, gross-smelling marsupials with Taylor Swift eyes. Regardless, the creature didn’t deserve such a painful, unfair demise. Humans built where they’ve lived for centuries and despite their bad PR, possums do serve a purpose in the bigger scheme of nature. I have no idea what it may be.
One big downside of this guilt is that I can’t easily go out and adopt another possum, give it a good life as penance like one could with a dog or cat. I’m open to suggestions if anyone has a solution.